Just one fatty meal can damage liver

Ben Cusack

Just one meal of burger and chips contains enough fat to have an impact on the liver, according to a new study.

Scientists found that just one instance of fat intake, the equivalent to the amount in a rich meal like sausage and mash, causes an immediate increase in fat accumulation and slows down liver metabolism.

This could go a long way to showing why consistently fatty diets lead to a whole host of problems, including insulin resistance and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

In a study published this week in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, a German-based team investigated how 14 lean, healthy people react to fat.

Prof Michael Roden’s lab at the German Diabetes Center investigated how a single episode of high saturated fat intake affected insulin sensitivity and markers of metabolism in humans.

They found that one instance of fat intake, equivalent to the amount in a rich meal, led to immediate increases in fat accumulation and alterations in liver metabolism.

Using example foods such as a pepperoni pizza, or cheeseburger and chips, they discovered the worrying changes each dish has on the body - including insulin resistance and higher glucagon levels in the blood.